Survey: MoveOn - What Should We Do About Iraq

MoveOn.org sent this email to me this morning, asking us to complete a short survey on what we should do about Iraq...

Dear MoveOn member,

Tonight, President Bush will give a speech in which, despite the chaos and car bombs and rising daily attacks by insurgents, he'll argue that everything is going well in Iraq and we should stay the course. It's clear that the president is out of touch with reality—as Republican Senator Chuck Hagel said, "It's like they're just making it up as they go along. The reality is that we're losing in Iraq."

We believe that it's time to stand up to him and demand that Congress begin bringing our troops home, while doing what we can to support a stable Iraq. We got into this war the wrong way, and it's time to get out the right way.

But we want to know where you stand. Should we work together in a major campaign to get Democrats and Republicans in Congress on board with a responsible exit plan? Or should we focus on other issues, either in Iraq or here at home?

We won't move forward without a mandate from you. Vote now at:

http://moveonpac.org/iraqsurvey/resolution.html?id=5716-5264813-vjyPsCSOlRozZD8lGjfX6g&t=3

For the last few years, the American public has been split on what to do about Iraq. Some folks have argued that it's our responsibility to stay there until a democratic, stable state emerges. Others believe that our presence fuels the insurgency, and that it's our duty to our men and women in uniform and to the Iraqi people to bring our troops home.

But in recent months, a major opinion shift has occurred: now more and more Americans believe that we've done what we can in Iraq, and that it's time to begin to come home.

Two weeks ago Rep. Walter Jones, the formerly pro-war Republican representative who coined the term "Freedom Fries," joined a bi-partisan group of legislators to call for a concrete plan to bring our men and women home from Iraq. The resolution introduced by him, fellow Republican Rep. Ron Paul and Democratic Congressmen Neil Abercrombie and Dennis Kucinich would require the president to put together a plan by the end of the year for bringing home all U.S. forces from Iraq—with troop withdrawal beginning no later than October 1, 2006.

Polling shows that nearly 60% of Americans say they oppose the Iraq war—including half who say it was a mistake. At the same time, Republican critics of the war grow by the day. Democrats are beginning to speak out. House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi called Iraq a "grotesque mistake" and Senate Leader Harry Reid called Bush policy, "disconnected from the reality on the ground."

These changes signal that there is perhaps a unique moment to point out the problems in Iraq and end the war in a better way than we started—bringing our troops home safely and helping the Iraqis build a new post-Saddam life.

We want to know what you think. Please take a few minutes right now to let us know by completing the survey at the link below.

http://moveonpac.org/iraqsurvey/resolution.html?id=5716-5264813-vjyPsCSOlRozZD8lGjfX6g&t=4

Thanks for sharing your feedback.

–Eli Pariser
Executive Director, MoveOn PAC
Tuesday, June 28th, 2005

P.S. Here are some helpful resources about the current state of affairs in Iraq.

"Bush Shifts Focus to Iraq," Associated Press, June 16, 2005
http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/06/16/bush.ap/

"Bush's Support on Major Issues Tumbles in Poll," The New York Times, June 17, 2005.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/17/politics/17poll.html

"N.C. congressmen supports timetable for withdrawal from Iraq." Associated Press, June 12, 2005.
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=759

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